Cetera Investment Advisers Reduces Position in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

Cetera Investment Advisers lessened its stake in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 274,347 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after selling 7,844 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers owned 0.05% of Franklin Resources worth $7,328,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 63.4% in the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 74,206 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $2,072,000 after purchasing an additional 28,795 shares in the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 24.8% in the first quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 11,477 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $320,000 after buying an additional 2,277 shares in the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Franklin Resources by 23.5% during the 1st quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 76,665 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $2,140,000 after buying an additional 14,580 shares in the last quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 89.2% during the 1st quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 36,852 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $1,029,000 after acquiring an additional 17,376 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers boosted its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 4.0% during the 1st quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 489,475 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $13,666,000 after acquiring an additional 18,645 shares during the last quarter. 46.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Mariann H. Byerwalter sold 6,011 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.01, for a total transaction of $144,324.11. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,494 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $251,960.94. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 23.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $21.50 to $24.50 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 1st. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Franklin Resources in a report on Thursday, October 5th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $26.00 to $24.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Franklin Resources from $26.00 to $24.00 in a report on Thursday, October 12th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and four have given a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $24.75.

Franklin Resources Trading Down 0.0 %

Franklin Resources stock opened at $24.55 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 1.89 and a current ratio of 1.88. The stock has a market cap of $12.14 billion, a PE ratio of 14.27 and a beta of 1.35. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $23.97 and a two-hundred day moving average of $25.66. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a one year low of $21.88 and a one year high of $34.37.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 31st. The closed-end fund reported $0.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.60 by $0.24. Franklin Resources had a net margin of 11.25% and a return on equity of 10.64%. The firm had revenue of $1.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.50 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.78 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 13th. Investors of record on Friday, September 29th were issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 28th. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 69.77%.

About Franklin Resources

Franklin Resources, Inc is a publicly owned asset management holding company. Through its subsidiaries, the firm provides its services to individuals, institutions, pension plans, trusts, and partnerships. It launches equity, fixed income, balanced, and multi-asset mutual funds through its subsidiaries.